A konghou is a term used to describe a Chinese harp. The wuo konghou, the shoo konghou, and the fong shou konghou are the three basic types of Chinese harps. Certain konghou instruments are held and played upright, while others are played lying flat. These harps make a sound when the strings are plucked with wooden picks or the fingertips, as they were in many ancient Chinese royal courts.
Despite the fact that many modern Chinese harps do not resemble antique models, they are still played in the same way. The konghou differs from other harps in that its strings are folded over the instrument across bridges, allowing the operator to play more notes off each string. Vibrato and bending tones are possible thanks to the folded strings.
These harps are capable of producing fast rhythms and overtones. When a string on one side of a konghou is plucked with a hand or pick, another hand can press the string on the opposite side of the instrument to produce a sound that is different from what would be produced if the string were plucking alone. Complex sounds are created plucking multiple strings together.
The three main types of konghou are distinguished primarily the way they are held and played. The horizontal konghou is known as the wuo konghou, while the vertical konghou is known as the shoo konghou. Horizontal Chinese harps are set up in front of the operator and played horizontally. Shoo konghou Chinese harps, on the other hand, are played vertically and held upright.
Vertical Chinese harps have seven, fifteen, twenty-two, or twenty-three strings and are bow-shaped. The index fingers and thumbs are used to play this type of Chinese harp, which is played with both hands. The neck of the fong shou konghou is adorned with a phoenix bird head design. The sound boxes on these instruments were originally carved in the shape of a boat. The original phoenix Chinese harps had strings that were either tied to the neck or pinned to the neck.
As early as 770 BC, the horizontal Chinese harp was being played in southern China. Several hundred years later, the instrument was widely used in a vertical fashion. During the Eastern Han Dynasty, between 22 and 220 AD, the shoo konghou made its debut. During the Tang Dynasty, between 618 and 907 AD, Chinese harps were widely used for ceremonies and rites. Between 317 and 420 AD, phoenix-headed konghous were introduced to China’s central plains from India.
Because more complicated instruments were introduced to China’s population, Chinese harps essentially fell out of favor around the seventeenth century. In the twentieth century, demand for konghou instruments resurfaced. The konghou was resurrected among the people of Shenyang, China, in 1964. Many manufacturers began producing hybrid konghou instruments in the mid-1980s, combining the designs of several instruments, including the mandolin.